Pages

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

"DEMONS" COULD HAVE KILLED BRAD HALSEY

When news broke about the death of former Yankee pitcher Brad Halsey, many were shocked. First reports revealed he had fallen to his death in a hiking accident. The fall was about 100 feet. To this day, his close friends and family still believe that the fall was ultimately the reason for Halsey's death. But in a new article by Josh Peter of USA Today, there are some very disturbing details about Brad Halsey that none of us knew about. None of us, until now. I wanted to share this with all of you, because as my wife and I read this story, we both were saddened and concerned for this poor man who, as an acquaintance was quoted in the Peter article, "...always seemed like he was running from something..."

Here's an excerpt:

"...an autopsy showing Halsey died from blunt force injuries... Halsey likely died in an accidental fall. Yet the detective says
he still wonders, and the case remains open pending the completion of a
toxicology report...

Public records and interviews with former coaches, teammates and
friends show Halsey was quiet, private, quirky, smart and witty. But his
behavior changed as he tried to hang on to a fading baseball career and
fell victim to prescription and recreational drug abuse...

Less than four months ago, police found Halsey walking
chest-deep in the nearby Comal River and identifying himself as Lucifer.
Officers had responded to a call about a man who fit Halsey's
description throwing rocks at people floating by on inner tubes and
talking to people no one else could see...

Halsey said he was
prepared to fight "Mitch," but witnesses said they saw no other man.
After Halsey exited the river and turned unruly, police put him in
shackles and drove him to an area hospital for evaluation. The police
report noted Halsey had mental problems due to drug use...

A
few months earlier, according to two men who spent time with the former
pitcher in the last months of his life, Halsey told them he had
schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The men also said Halsey made an
outrageous statement, claiming he was on cocaine and other drugs when he
gave up Bonds' historic home run and had spent much of the $1 million
he made during his baseball career on drugs.

'He always seemed like he was running from something,' said James Pankey, an instructional coach in the San Antonio area..."

The piece goes on with denials from friends, fellow ball players that claim that they never saw Halsey high. Even his mother denied the psychiatric diagnoses, saying it was "not accurate". We wanted to be fair to the people that knew Halsey and not only go by the reports. That being said, you have to wonder what happened to Halsey, who, had a dream to make it to the Bigs, got there, and then, be it drugs, or something else, just lost it completely. It's very sad.

I was thinking back to when BYB first reported about Mr. Halsey. We wrote BRAD HALSEY IS DEAD, and in the piece I wrote the following:

"The cause of death is not known at this point, but the dude was 33... you gotta be alittle concerned here."

I was accused to suggesting he was perhaps it was drugs or was self inflicted. At the time, it was in the back of my mind, but the truth is, I didn't know at the time, and the line was meant to just say, "Hey, he's young, this is sad." Little did I know... I was right on point. I feel worse about it now.

Anyway, take the time, read Josh Peter's entire story HERE. It's eye opening.

But look, this is what got me the most. Doing the research after reading the article in USA today, I stumbled across the roster for the RailCats, a team Halsey was apart of in 2010. In his description was this:

"I wouldn't be playing baseball without: My mom."

In the Peter piece, he wrote of the relationship between Halsey and his mother growing up: "... There was
little Brad Halsey pitching to his mother, Loretta Halsey, who was
decked out in catcher's gear.

That shakes me to my core, because Brad Halsey could be anyone's kid. I feel for the Halsey family right now.